


us and what lives in the woods

by spideywhiteys



Series: 365 Days of Naruto AUs [76]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Ambiguous/Open Ending, Camping, Childhood Friends, Established Relationship, F/M, Tenten POV, ambiguous monster lore, but also slight urban fantasy bc cryptids, cryptid hyuuga clan, cryptid neji
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-17
Updated: 2021-03-17
Packaged: 2021-03-26 23:00:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,013
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30113334
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spideywhiteys/pseuds/spideywhiteys
Summary: Tenten knows there's something off about the Hyuuga family. That's never really bothered her enough to leave Neji, her childhood friend and now lover - but...she thinks about it sometimes.OR:For the first time in all that they've known each other, Neji takes Tenten with him on one of his quarterly camping trips.
Relationships: Hyuuga Neji/Tenten
Series: 365 Days of Naruto AUs [76]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2086938
Kudos: 15





	us and what lives in the woods

**Author's Note:**

> Day 76: Cryptid AU / Neji + Tenten

Tenten wakes while it’s dark. The tent is thin, just barely keeping in the warmth of their body heat. For a moment she’s not quite sure what has awoken her. It’s spring, so the weather is still warming. The nights are chilly, and even if she feels toasty under the blankets with Neji pressed to her side, her breath is visible in faint wisps. Her ears pick up the night swell of buzzing insects. 

There’s nothing wrong, objectively, that she can hear or see. 

But she feels...unsettled. The hairs on the back of her neck stand up, and even though she’s laying down she still wants to turn and look behind her. For a moment, she contemplates waking up Neji. But there’s no point in ruining his sleep just because she has a bad feeling, especially if it turns out that there’s nothing there to begin with. It’s not like he’d make her feel too bad about it. He’d call her  _ ridiculous _ in that huffy, fond tone of his, then get out to patrol the campsite. 

Tenten rolls her eyes. She really is being ridiculous.

Laying back down, Tenten closes her eyes and wills herself back to sleep.

* * *

They’ve known each other for years; since they were ugly ducklings in sixth grade. They’re in college now, twenty and still figuring out what they want from life. The only thing they’ve truly settled on is that they want each other, and it was backbreaking work to get to that point. 

Neji’s family is rather secretive.  _ Posh _ is a word she would use.  _ Strict _ is another. It’s not that she doesn’t like them, but she doesn’t really feel comfortable around them at all. She feels like they watch her too closely. Pick her apart with their oddly moon-like eyes. 

Every three months Neji goes on a camping trip, whether it only be for a weekend during the school year, or an entire week during the summer. It’s been like that since they were children. Tenten was an outdoorsy child — is now an outdoorsy adult — a tomboy that liked getting her hands dirty, that tried out every sport under the sun because she couldn’t pick one to stick with. 

But never, not once, had she ever gone camping with Neji. Sure, she’d gone plenty of times with her own family, but it wasn’t until just last month that Neji approached her to ask about it.

It still shocks her now, and they’ve already spent a night out in the woods!

As she expected, when they woke the next day there wasn’t anything wrong with the camp. No signs of wild animals, no obvious broken underbrush or footsteps in the dirt. She shakes her head. 

_ What are you even thinking… _

They walk about half a mile north to reach a lake, where they spend a few hours swimming and talking. It’s a lot quieter without Lee, but she figures that this camping experience is supposed to be something like a date and the other man would just be a third wheel. Besides, she’d probably suffocate him in his sleep if they had to share a tent. He snores louder than a chainsaw. 

Along with their bathing suits and towels they’d also brought a picnic basket of pre-made snacks to munch on. Tenten doesn’t bring up the feeling she had last night. She enjoys her time dragging Neji into the water, laughing when he complains about getting his hair wet. He still follows, pale and regal and looking like something out of a painting. She used to be annoyed at how pretty he was; he even outshone half the girls, her included. Now she’s smug at having bagged him.

Tenten stretches, splashes a bit more of the dark lake water towards Neji, and smiles — yeah, she’s pretty happy.

* * *

She wakes again long after night has fallen to the same feeling of being watched. Her breathing halts in her chest, stuttering past her lips. Tenten swallows, sweat beading at her temple. It feels worse somehow, and she’s overcome with the terrible premonition of someone standing right outside the tent. 

Never has she been so paranoid. Prepared, yeah — but paranoid to the point of creating imaginary monsters? She’s not even a stranger to camping, there isn’t anything out here that she’s unfamiliar with. Not unless there’s serial killers prowling the woods right now….

Tenten opens her eyes.

The thought is improbable but the feeling of danger lingers, so her mind can’t help but assume  _ that might actually be it. _

Tenten sits up slowly, careful not to make too much sound with her movement. The blankets fall around her lap and her breath hovers like mist before her. She swallows again, staring intently at the entrance to the tent. She can’t make out any shadows, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t someone there. 

It’s silent.

Until it isn’t.

There’s an ominous creaking outside the tent, sound distorted to the point where she can’t tell which direction it’s coming from. Branches snap, purposeful after the pure silence. Tenten feels herself break out into a cold sweat. Whatever is out there, it sounds like there’s more than one. Barely able to see in the dark of the tent, Tenten reaches out to shake Naji beside her. She flinches when he snatches her trembling hand with easy dexterity.

When she turns to look at him, fear stealing her tongue, she’s met with the sight of glowing eyes, like lavender moons. They pierce through the dark, illuminating the small space.

Outside the tent, the moaning and groaning of wood continues, and now the snapping branches give way to slow, unhurried footsteps.

“Neji?” She whispers fearfully, every memory of her boyfriend, her childhood friend, getting erased in a single moment; replaced by the sight of inhuman eyes, a mouth full of sharp teeth, and the steady growth of horns from his temples. He transforms before her eyes into something larger than life, shrouded in shadows. 

“Don’t be afraid,” he says, imploring as he holds her hand with careful claws. “We’re going to be a family.”

**Author's Note:**

> little disappointed in this one, because it's such a cool concept but my brain and ADHD were not having it.... like i feel as if i could have written something more in depth,,,,, hmm


End file.
